title: Fetal echocardiography: present and future applications.
abstract: Fetal heart motion was observed by T-M-mode echocardiography form the twelfth to fortieth week of gestation in 47 apparently normal pregnancies. In the earliest case (at 12 weeks), cardiac pulsations were recorded in a fetus in which the heart sounds could not be detected by Doppler ultrasound. The left and right ventricular dimensions and left-to-right ventricular ratios were determined in 24 of the 35 fetuses in which high-quality images were obtained. Interventricular septal motion was evaluated in 30 of these 35 fetuses. Potential clinical applications of echocardiography in evaluating fetal status are also presented.
mesh_terms: D004452:Echocardiography / Q000639:trends; D005260:Female; D005318:Fetal Heart; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D011296:Prenatal Diagnosis / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends